High School Hearts
by LBWind
Summary: A group of high schoolers come together to stop an evil force at work: a mysterious new student, a cryptic message, stating the demise of Destiny Islands, the return of Organization XIII after its split, and the threat of a coming Keyblade War. Standing together, these friends' destinies are intertwined to the very end: how the end will result, no one knows. OCs included
1. The First Day, part 1

**PROLOGUE**

A shadowy figure walked under a street light at two in the morning. The figure appeared to be a young man, but the cloak hid him in a way that no one could tell who or even what he was. He was disguised by the blackness of the night, as if he himself was a shadow. The boy ran from the light of the lamp, and was once again hidden from sight.

Police cars drove by, and he flattened himself against a nearby wall. When the cars were gone, he emerged from the wall and inspected the thirteen candles he held in his hand. Each was a black wax stick, dipped in red blood. He placed them back in his leather jacket, then pulled out his lighter and looked far into the darkness. He saw a small black hole, and he departed for it.

The somber boy stepped into blackness, little light cast on the rats and spiders he stepped over as his footsteps echoed in the concealed cave. He finally found a source of light at the end of the tunnel, and he put away his lighter. As he stepped into the light, he set down the lighter, the candles, and a stack of envelopes, thirteen of them. The boy pulled out a pen and papers, then wrote on each paper:

_ Your time has come at last. Come to the alley behind the amusement park and wait for your light to appear and bring you back._

The boy finished writing, then stuffed the letters in the envelopes and stuck them in his jacket. He left his other materials behind and quitted the cave, returning to the black of night.

* * *

**CHAPTER ONE: JIYUNA AND INGRID**

* * *

Jiyuna

I woke up to sunshine on my face. I could hardly stand the light, and I deeply wished to throw the covers over my face, but it's my first day of school this morning.

I stood up and walked to my dresser, adorned with accessories, pictures of my friends and family, and clothes strewn over it. I picked out a black-and-white striped shirt with a sleeveless blue tunic and maroon shorts, then wrapped a green scarf around my waist. I put on a pair of black gloves and my mother's necklace and a black choker, then went to my bathroom to brush my teeth and do my hair. I spiked my bangs out and loosely braided my hair, then put on some eyeliner and mascara. I ran downstairs and saw my brother Jinsei lying on the couch watching the news. I said, "Jinsei what time is it?"

He looked up and said to me, "I think it's 7:15, Ji."

I said, "Great, let's get some breakfast with Riku."

He said, "Okay," and we left the house after I put on my little green slouch boots. My brother and I walked over to Riku's house a few blocks away and simply stepped into his house and greeted his mother and brother. I walked over to Riku's room while he was putting on a shirt and said, "Hurry up, we're getting breakfast, 'Ku."

Riku turned to me and said, "Jeez, Jiyuna, you're on your way to being scary," and grinned. I walked over to him and fixed his mess of long silver hair, moving his bangs out of his eyes. He shook them back into place and said, "Hey, I like my hair as it is. This way people don't stare at my face so much."

I laughed and said, "Riku, if your face doesn't bring attention, it's your hair covering up your face!"

Riku shrugged and walked out of his room, me following his lead. We walked into the living room where Jinsei, Riku's mom, and Riku's brother Peter sat, ready for a new school year. I said, "Sorry we can't stay long, but we need to get breakfast quick and head to school," to Riku's mom, and she replied, "That's quite alright, Jiyuna. You three have fun on your first day of junior year."

"We will," I replied, gesturing for Riku and Jinsei to get ready to leave. They followed me out the door, all of us saying bye to Riku's family. His dad works the majority of the week, so we rarely see him at all, as well as Riku. Riku's dad is nice, but he could definitely be considered as a workaholic. On the other hand, Riku's mom is a real estate agent, and has more time for Riku and Peter. She's a very sweet woman, and she is a role model for me. My mother died a long time ago, or so we believe. Something of a tragedy happened when Jinsei and I were very young and still living in Twilight Town, and our mother disappeared as a result. I think about her every day, and still wear her necklace.

We kept walking until we reached a local bagel shop, then we strolled into the shop and ordered muffins and bagels and coffee. The three of us walked out after purchasing our breakfast, and continued treading to school.

"Hey, Riku," I said, to get his attention. He looked at me and said, "Yeah, Jiyuna?"

"Which classes do you have today?" I asked him. Riku gazed upwards, thinking over his schedule, then said, "I've got Economics, Biology, P.E., and Worldview Studies for A-Day, and English III, Calculus, Computer Science, and Russian for B-Day."

"Aw," I whined, "The only class I have with you is Computer Science. Now how will I get to see you during the day?"

Riku put his arm around me and said, "Don't worry, Ji, we always have lunch and our one class period." I blushed even though I shouldn't have. I was used to Riku and the guys nonchalantly throwing their arms around me, but in this case I couldn't help but blush, thinking about a conversation between my best friend and I last night.

_**Flashback**_

_"Jiyuna, think about it! You're friends with a ton of cute guys, but you won't try to make one yours? Come on, no doubt one of these guys is gonna want you," said Furi.  
_

_"Fu, hasn't it crossed your mind that maybe I'm not interested in my friends? I kinda want to stay that way, just friends. And that's actually hypocritical of you to say, considering you're friends with my brother and you won't do anything to get him." Furi's interested in my brother, and although it's strange for me, I'm fine with it. They seemed like they could be a cute couple, and I'd be nothing but supportive of them.  
_

_"Th-that's different, Ji!" she stuttered, "But you can honestly get any guy you want, even Riku."  
_

_I replied, "I don't think we'd be a great couple though."  
_

_"You'd be perfect together! Just keep your mind open about it. Alright, I'm going to bed, nighty-night," Furi said sleepily then hung up. I set the phone down and went to bed, the idea of being with one of my closest friends swirling through my mind._

_**Reality**_

I snapped out of my daze and said to Riku, "Yeah, I guess we have more time after school, too."

He smiled at me and shouted happily, "Good, looking on the bright side of things, Ji!"

I smiled back and we walked to school, and my brother and Riku kissed me on the cheek as we went to our classes.

* * *

Ingrid

I slung my bag over my shoulder and followed Emily's voice to the edge of the room, where the garage evidently was. I was currently living at her home as a foreign exchange student. "Come on, Ingrid! We're going to be late!" Emily called as her mom started up the car. I grabbed a couple of earrings from the counter and ran out the door, my hair still messy. My prep school in London didn't start until nine thirty, so beginning this early was very shocking. I hopped in the car next to my new friend, and I sorted through the various earrings that were rolling around in the palm of my hand. I picked out a white diamond, sticking it through the first hole in my ear. Next, I chose a chocolate diamond, sticking it in the second hole in my left ear. I had already put in the two more earrings in the cartilage of my left ear. I combed my straight and, frankly, boring hair out with my fingers, weaving knots out of it with slim and skillful fingers. My hair was so dark it was nearly black, but I had thickly streaked the natural color with a thin caramel color. My eyes were thickly outlined in eyeliner, not so that I could be seen as gothic or dark, but so they would accentuate my electric blue eyes. My skin was pocked with little, almost invisible pimples, which many people mistook for fading freckles. I have a small, petite diamond embedded in my nose.

I smiled at Emily, who smiled back. "Sorry, there's some rubbish on the bench, just leave that for me. I'll clean it up when I get back home." Emily's mother looked at me through the rearview mirror and she smiled at me. She adored my Cardiff accent.

Just as we got out of the car, Emily's mother smiled. "Have a nice day, girls!" she grinned, waving to us from the wrong side of the car. It felt nice to have someone to wish us a nice day. I didn't get to see my real parents or my step parents, because my school in London didn't allow me to go all the way to Wales to visit. I stepped forward to enter the school, when Emily grabbed my arm. "Oh, Ingrid… I just thought you'd want to know, this school could be pretty rough. There's a good chance that it's nothing like your prep school back home. But if you hang around with Libby, Lexi, Riku, Squall, and I and you'll be fine." Emily reassured. Then she gasped as if she'd forgotten something. "Oh, and Jiyuna, Jinsei, Ikite, and Furi are really awesome friends too, I'll introduce them to you as well."

I lifted an eyebrow and stared at Emily, which she didn't notice until we were halfway up the steps to the school. "What?" she asked, sort of defensively.

"Sounds to me like you've got a crush…"

"Do not!" Emily replied. "Squall's just a friend."

"If you say so…" I replied, raising an eyebrow. Emily led me to the front office. She rang a bell, to which the assistant principal scurried up to. Mrs. Strife-Gainsborough smiled at Emily and I. "Hello, Emily. And who is this?"

"Mrs. Strife-Gainsborough, I got an exchange student over the summer, and this is her first day. I was wondering if you had a schedule for her?" Emily explained.

Mrs. Strife-Gainsborough smiled warmly at me. She then drifted her gaze to Emily. "Yes, Emily, your mother contacted me over the summer and we have a whole schedule all set up for Ms. Ingrid O'Donnell, is it?"

"Yes, ma'am." I replied. "Thank you."

Emily smiled and led me out of the office, glancing over at my schedule, and then checking hers. "Oh, sweet! We've got Mrs. Baker first hour!" Emily did a kind of fist pump and led me to my locker, which was only a few down from hers. She showed me how to put in a combination and fetch my things from my locker. Mrs. Baker was a science teacher, so I needed to get a notebook and a Number 2 pencil. After I had my supplies, I followed Emily quite happily to Mrs. Baker's classroom, which I was sure would be a brilliant start to my day.

… Not. Mrs. Baker was a stupid, old, slob who watched the telly the whole time. We barely heard a peep from her. However, in the time that Mrs. Baker _wasn't _teaching, I got very well acquainted with Libby, who seemed to be a very good friend of Emily's. Libby had long brown hair that fell in front of her eyes, but there was a black headband wrapped that she kept around her head. She had fair skin and dark brown eyes, and she was very pretty and nice. And there were also very sketchy people in the classroom as well.

One of the boys was sitting alone in a corner with his head bowed. He had dirty blonde hair and wore lots of checkers. There was a little blonde teenager and she was trying to talk to him. Her hand was on his leg, and she was smiling. She was dressed completely in white and had her bangs parted to the side.

The next boy was hanging around a group of _other _sketchy teens, but to me, this one stood out. His hair was long and grey, and he looked very, _very _sullen. A little _too _sullen. He looked up and glared at me, and I turned my back to him, avoiding his penetrating grey eyes. Other teens surrounded me, but I paid them no mind, seeing that they only spoke nonsense. A few other teenagers peaked my interest, such as a boy with spiky, strawberry-blonde hair and large headphones over his ears, part of his face covered by the over-sized turtleneck that was fitted to his lanky figure. He sat alone, unwilling to speak to anybody. The same could be said for another boy with wavy hair and a white button-down shirt and jeans. He didn't seem unwilling to speak to anybody, per se, but he didn't seem to wish for anyone's company. I noticed him staring at me, and I glared back at him, not wanting his attention drawn to me, distracting me in a startling way.

All of a sudden, the bell rang, signaling the end of the first hour-and-a-half long period of the year.

When we walked out of the classroom, I mouthed the word _"wow"_and made my way across the hall to my second hour.

**END OF CHAPTER ONE**


	2. The First Day, part 2

**AN: ****I apologize for the long wait, I was in North Dakota for a week. ****Thanks to KHCrazy for editing and partnering up with me and waiting so patiently to write her part! I hope you enjoy the new revised version of High School Hearts, and feel free to review, favorite, follow me!**

**Disclaimer: I do not, in any way, shape, form or fashion, own Kingdom Hearts. I own the plot of this story, and the characters listed: Libby, Lexi, Jiyuna, Jinsei, Furi, Ikite, the teachers, and countless other characters that have never been in Kingdom Hearts. I partially own Emily and Ingrid as well, but those are KHCrazy's own characters.**

* * *

**CHAPTER TWO: LIBBY AND JINSEI**

* * *

Libby

I walked around the school, making my way to second period: English III with Ms. Clark, a very nice woman who I helped in class often as a freshman. I smiled as I remembered freshman year, hanging out with Ms. Clark. Ms. Clark had just started teaching at the high school when I was a freshman, and her classroom was often messy, since she didn't have the time to unpack and really make the room nice. I walked into her class one day when school was over and offered to help her. She seemed really happy, and her room transformed as the year progressed.

When I entered the room, Ms. Clark looked up and said, "Great, this'll be a good class this year." I smiled and said, "Of course it will be, you're teaching it."

"You flatter me so much, Libby."

"I mean it, you're a good teacher," I replied, picking a seat in the front row of the empty classroom. I liked sitting up front, as well as really paying attention to Ms. Clark's lessons. She's the reason why I've passed my courses in English I and II, and I'm very grateful to her.

Students started filing into the classroom, one by one occupying spaces in corners and sitting at or on their desks. Some new kids were in the classroom, and I waited for Ms. Clark to take the role. The new students stared at me, and I smiled back at them, receiving only one smile in return.

Ms. Clark stood at the center of the room, watching as the students sat down and stared at her. It's understandable why they would stare; she's a beautiful woman in her mid-twenties, with dirty blond hair beginning in waves and ending in ringlets, grey and green eyes, a pale pink blouse tucked into her grey and black pencil skirt that shows off her curves, little black heels that make her just a little taller than me, and minimal jewelry. A few rings adorned her fingers except for her bare ring finger on her left hand, signifying her status as neither married nor engaged. Teardrop earrings hung from her ears, as well as a matching necklace displayed around her neck.

"Alright guys, I'm going to call out the role, and I want you to answer me when I call your name, okay?" Ms. Clark held up a sheet of paper and began to name the students. "Garnet."

"Here," said Garnet, a tiny girl with long brown hair, a white puffy shirt, an orange jumpsuit with buckles on her thighs, and red boots and gloves.

"Libby."

"Here," I called back.

"Zell."

"Oh yeah!" said a young man with a tattoo on his face.

"Zack."

"Right here!" Zack Fair cried, nearly falling out of his chair. Girls often stared at him, with his spiky black hair, electric blue eyes, and large muscles. He's preparing to go into the SOLDIER program in Midgar, where my dad is from. Midgar is the center of a large island that is very distant from Destiny Islands. I hope to go there someday.

"—Joshua."

A blond boy in a white button down shirt and jeans flipped his hair and said, "I'm here, Ms. Clark." This guy seemed really pompous and vexatious, but he was… angelic, in a way. There was an odd glow about him, radiating off his pale skin. I decided I would keep an eye on him.

"Squall."

"That's Leon," my friend interjected in his usual monotone voice. Only a select few people, including myself, could refer to Leon as Squall, which is his real name. He derived "Leon" from his last name, "Leonhart." Personally, "Leon Leonhart" sounds really weird. Squall's appearance was a pleasant one, with his light blue eyes and brown unruly hair, but his personality was the polar opposite of pleasant. He often wished for no affiliation with "bothersome pests," but I got into his group of friends somehow! Just kidding. Squall didn't hang out with anybody at first, but we became his friends eventually-"we" being me, Riku, Lexi, and Emily. He's a tough guy, but he's got a soft spot for us. "Neku."

Another boy with spiky hair and headphones answered "here" quietly, his mouth covered by his turtleneck. He was familiar to Joshua somehow, but in place of light, he had a much darker essence. This dark aura disturbed me, and I would watch him as well.

"—and Zidane. Okay guys, to start the year off, we're going to write a short essay on what or who we see in this classroom. This will contribute to a game we're going to play. You cannot name anyone or write about a place specifically. Everybody ready?" We all answered yes and began to write. I wrote on my paper, describing my friend Squall, who was in this class with me but didn't really didn't care to make conversation with me one-on-one, and a few other students. I then looked at Joshua and Neku, and began to write about them as well.

_… hair that defies gravity… headphones that cover his ears from noise all over the world…  
_

_… pale, glowing, angelic skin… wavy, blond hair… devilish grin…_

* * *

Jinsei

"Hey, Jiyuna!" I cried out to my sister. She turned around with her hair sweeping through the air, searching for the source of the call. Her brown eyes landed on me, and she smiled. My friends Pence, Hayner, and Roxas bumped into her after leaving the restroom and greeted her, Hayner slinging his arm around Ji as he usually does. I'm fine with it, since I let Jiyuna hang out with us when we were younger and she didn't have much of any friends. My friends are her friends, and we all get along just fine. Jiyuna, fortunately, has more friends now, and she'll still have some friends when my friends and I leave next year. I'm a year, nearly two, older than Jiyuna. We've always been close as kids, and we're still close now.

"Yeah, Jin?" my sister said as she made her way over to me.

"Have any trouble today?"

"No, why do you ask?"

"No reason," I lied and turned my head. I was concerned for Jiyuna's safety, since our mom wasn't here to be concerned. I didn't want to find that she'd be in any trouble with somebody, today, or any other day. She's my little sister, and she's important to me. I walked away, unaware of my surroundings, and bumped into Riku.

"Hey, Jinsei," Riku said as we walked into the restroom. I greeted him back and said, "I just ran into Jiyuna."

He replied, "She is your sister, man."

"You know, I'm a little worried about her."

"Why?"

"I'm just worried, like any big brother would be."

"Jinsei," Riku gave me a discerned look, "You can tell me what it is. I'm your friend."

"Alright," I acquiesced, "Well, I'll be gone next year, and I can't make sure that she'll be safe from whatever comes her way. I've always been able to protect her, whether it's from bullies, guys, any incoming dangers that could hurt her somehow. Plenty of my friends and I taught her how to defend herself against bullies, and we let her know how to manage herself when it comes to weird men, but I just feel like I need to keep protecting her."

Riku looked at me sympathetically and said, "She's gonna have these problems all her life. You and your friends taught her well, made her very strong. Jiyuna has enough sense to detect the weird guys she should avoid, and I believe she'll find a real good guy that will protect her from those weirdos, too. As for those incoming dangers, how about you trust somebody to keep her safe? She's robust enough to wipe the floor with whatever comes her way, but I see your point, Jin. Unfortunately, I can't say you'll always be able to protect her, because you can't."

"I know that," I replied, "but she's only sixteen. Anything can happen while I'm away."

"Just trust that she'll be fine, Jinsei."

I sighed, then said, "Fine. So how are you and Jiyuna?"

Riku blushed and said, "What do you mean?"

I said, "I mean, how good of friends are you?" I could sense that Riku took an interest in Jiyuna, and I wanted to see if I could get him to admit it. I trust Riku, believe me, I just want another reason to tease him.

He answered, "Well, how good of friends are you and Ikite?"

Heat rushed into my cheeks and I stuttered, trying to retort, "What are you implying?"

"You like her, Jin. It's kind of obvious, with the way you look and trail after her."

"I don't have time for this," I started walking away, red-faced. Sure, I might like her, but that's no business of his. Ikite's just a friend, and that's all she ever will be in relation to me. I sorta wish I could change that… but she'd never be with a guy like me. Riku called after me, "You might want to consider Furi, too, she seems to like you!" How absurd, the idea of Furi liking me. Ha-ha.

I kept walking away, off to third period. I was in English III this year, since I was no good in it last year. I saw Furi and Ikite, chatting as usual. Approaching them, I sat in a desk behind Ikite quietly, then motioned to Furi to not give me away. She saw, and kept talking to Ikite until I grabbed Ikite's shoulders and yelled, "Boo!"

"Ah!" Ikite screamed, jumping up from her seat. She glared at me, then smacked my arm while I grinned at her. "Jinsei," she said, "You silly old devil, you scared me."

"I can tell," I responded, earning another smack on the arm. Furi giggled, and I said, "See? Furi thinks that was funny, too."

"Furi!" Ikite turned to her, scolding Furi for laughing while she gets scared stiff. I laughed and watched the girls interact. Ikite was a pretty girl, with bright green eyes and long brown hair with wispy bangs. She wore a short, pink one-shoulder dress with varying shades of purple layers around the skirt. The only jewelry she wore were silver armbands in different styles and colorful bangles on her wrist. Furi, on the other hand, had short brown hair in pigtails high on her head and soft blue eyes. She looked a lot like her older sister Olette, another friend of mine who will also leave next year, with the same khaki caprice, only with a yellow pleated halter top, slip-on beige shoes, and long crotchet fingerless gloves.

"Class!" Ms. Clark enunciated, "Take your seats, and we'll begin English for the year!" We all took a seat and Ms. Clark was taking role call, when tiredness suddenly swept over me. I could hear Ms. Clark saying something about writing, and I saw Ikite watching Ms. Clark intently, and Furi looked at me strangely, and then… and then… there's… blank… nothing… nothing… nothing.

* * *

The shadow-like boy wandered in the cave once again. He investigated his items on the ground, insuring that nothing moved from its place. The candles remained in their same spots, and so did everything else. The boy laughed to himself, thinking, _I did a little too well in finding a secure spot to store my tools._

He picked up all his candles and set them upright. Out of his pocket, the boy pulled out sparkling, faint violet-colored dust in a bowl. On top of the dust sat a feeble bone and pieces of hair. He lowered the bowl to the dirty soil, then pulled out a pocketknife. He set it down as well, then pulled a lone candle out and lit it with his lighter. He began to mumble words, magic words, words seeped in dark magic. He stirred the cup of dust, without the bone and hairs, continued to recite the words, and then added the bone. The outlandish young man closed his eyes, added the hairs, and readied his knife. Sticking his hand over the mixture, the boy lowered the blade, the edge cutting through skin. Blood slowly dripped from his hand, and into the mixture, still speaking.

The mixture began to glow, and the boy began to shake violently. A cry erupted from his lips, it being elicited from his clenching throat. A fire was building inside him, and it burned. Eventually, the fire cooled, and he felt himself again, only a little stronger. The mixture continued to glow, and he set the bowl somewhere inside the shadows, protecting it. The boy once again left, waiting for the day when the thirteen would receive their letters, and he could resurrect them for an everlasting reunion that would change the fate of the worlds.

**END OF CHAPTER TWO**


	3. The First Day, part 3

**AN: Hey! I'm excited for this chapter here. I wonder who that mysterious…boy…could be… XD**

* * *

**CHAPTER THREE: EMILY AND IKITE**

* * *

Emily

After Mrs. Baker, the day passed smoothly. I had been introduced to Mrs. Malone in my second hour, a kind and gentle woman, who looked as if she were in her mid thirties. She was a pleasant and pretty woman with thin brunette hair and bright green eyes. She had a slender figure and talked with a slight French accent from speaking in that tongue for so many years. The class was actually quite amusing, seeing most students stumbling over their French, which they clearly had not even attempted to study over the summer. Ingrid had taken French much longer than I had, so she, too, was ahead of the game. As I was making my way to physical education, I saw Jiyuna and Riku also headed in the same direction.

I came up on one side of Riku, grinning as I taking a hold of his upper arm and slightly hanging off it in a friendly manner. It wasn't flirtatious, Riku is one of my best friends, and it's also totally obvious that he has a huge crush on Jiyuna. "Hey, guys." I said with bright eyes. I loved catching up with my friends in the hallway. "Where are you headed?"

Riku, being much taller than me, smirked as he looked down on my face. I could see his bright blue eyes gleaming from underneath his silver bangs. "I'm going to P.E. and Jiyuna's going to Biology, what about you?"

"I'm going to P.E., too! Yay, we have a class together!" I said, letting go of Riku's arm and clapping as I continued to walk at the same pace as them. When we found the room, Riku allowed Jiyuna to enter, then continued walking. I pulled Jiyuna discreetly to the side, stepping in front of her and crossing my arms, grinning.

"What?" she asked, defense rising up in her voice.

"Whoa, whoa, don't get defensive _already!"_I laughed, placing my hands on either side of my friend's shoulders. "I was just going to say that I think that Riku might have a little crush on you." I articulated, although Jiyuna probably already knew. "Just a tiny one though." I said with a twinge of sarcasm, holding my thumb and index finger close together to show exactly how small the crush was.

Jiyuna's cheeks grew positively cherry red, and I barely heard her as she said, "Maybe, maybe not," as she rushed to her seat. I grinned, my smile fading when I realized I was not in the right classroom. I rushed over to the full gym, my cheeks burning.

I sat down and looked over the person next to me, expecting to see a person who I was unacquainted with. It was the contrary, actually, because I was sitting next to Squall. Yes, this class was going to be very, very fun.

**.o.o.o.o.o.O.O.O.o.o.o.o.o.**

I walked out of the gymnasium with Squall. "I'll see you at lunch, okay?" I beamed as I came up behind Ingrid.

Ingrid jumped as I placed my hands on her shoulders. "So, how's your first day been?" I asked, leaning on the wall as she put her things back in her locker.

"Quite good. I very much dislike Mrs. Baker though." Ingrid replied as she gently shut her locker.

"Tell me about it." I mumbled, as I weaved Ingrid through the crowd in the hallway. Once we got through the cluster of people, the trip to the lunchroom was easy. Once in the sanitary cafeteria, I scoured the room for my friends. I found them easily; we have a table that we use every day in the center of the lunchroom. "Come on, this way." I said, glancing back to make sure Ingrid was still following me. There were only two empty seats left, one next to Squall and one in between Libby and Jinsei. The circular table held twelve people at the most, and since there were now eleven students sitting at this table, we weren't too squished. "All right, before we go up to the lunch line, I'd like for you all to meet Ingrid. She's an exchange student from England."

One by one, Ingrid met all of my friends. She had already met Libby, but kindly acknowledged Squall, Lexi, Riku, Eric, Myron, Jiyuna, Jinsei, Furi, and Ikite when introduced. Libby, Lexi and Myron had brought lunch from home, but the rest of us went to stand in the lunch line. As we were weaving through the many tables, Ingrid winked at me and my cheeks grew red. "Shut up!" I mouthed to her, and as a response she giggled into her hands.

The line was quick, so we all got our food rather fast. Once we had all eaten, I stood up. "Who wants to come and play Frisbee with me in the courtyard?" I offered, grinning.

"I'll come!" Libby said, standing up.

"Jiyuna and I'll come too." Riku added, he and Jiyuna standing up as well.

"Anyone else?" I asked, "Last call."

"I'll come." Jinsei said, rising from his chair.

"All right." I smiled, moving toward the doors to the courtyard with my friends. Once we were outside, a crisp summer wind blew up my short, curled reddish-brownish hair with blonde streaks, making my hair look more lively and forcing my green eyes to shut for a moment. A box of things to play with stood on a far wall. I rummaged through them until I found a Frisbee, sitting right at the bottom. I spun around on my heels. "Ready?" I yelled, catching everyone's attention. With much clumsiness, I threw the Frisbee to Libby. "Sorry! I haven't played Frisbee in months!" I said with a laugh.  
Libby, too, gave a laugh as she threw it much more skillfully than I, to Riku, who proceeded to throw it to Jiyuna. The circle continued, the game growing evermore exciting as each of us attempted to make it more interesting by angling the Frisbee or throwing it lower to the ground.

With only five minutes left of free time, our game was coming to a close. For a moment, I became distracted, watching as those same two sketchy boys from Mrs. Baker's class, Neku and Joshua, I believe, walked on the outskirts of the courtyard. There was something about them that I simply didn't like. Neku turned his head, looking me straight in the eye. I felt a chill move down my spine, totally forgetting about the game of Frisbee. Once Neku turned back, I watched them until they were out of sight. I was jolted, rather rudely back into reality by the sound of my name being called, paired with the words, "Look out!" I ducked low onto the ground instinctively, hearing the Frisbee hit the wall of the school. As I straightened up, the bell rang. Libby was moving back into the school when she glanced at my face. "Are you okay?" She asked. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"No, I'm fine. I just got a bit of a chill." I answered, my color returning as I made my way back to my locker, gathering my things for my fourth hour.

* * *

Ikite

I walked in the hallways, my footsteps echoing yet not being heard because of the massive quantity of students lingering in the halls as well, as I teased Jinsei for falling asleep in class. While Ms. Clark had allowed us to write, I had turned and noticed him snoozing on the desk, drooling all over his paper. In an effort to keep him out of trouble, I had thrown a ball of paper at him, directly hitting his nose. He woke up, drool all over half of one side of his face, and some in his spiky brown hair. Jinsei kept trying to defend himself, and I laughed.

"I couldn't help it!" Jinsei cried, "My eyelids lost their…their…their elasticity!"

"Elasticity? Jinsei, if I didn't know better, I'd say you slept through Biology, too," I giggled, and he turned red, stuttering, "I-I di-did not!"

"Alright, I've got to head to class, I'll see you, Jin," I laughed, waving at him and walking to Biology. "Later, Iki," Jinsei replied, then started walking with me again, as if he forgot something. "Yes, Jinsei?"

"You're coming to the usual spot, right?" he inquired.

"Of course. After school, the usual spot," I answered.

"Okay. See you," Jinsei walked off once again. I continued trekking to my destination, my messenger bag swishing by my side. The day had been pretty good for me, and it was coming to a close.

I walked into Mrs. Baker's class, ready for the school day to end, waiting to come to the usual spot. The usual spot was a grassy area outside the mall, hidden by a garrison of trees. We originally found the spot in freshman year, and it had been our hangout ever since. Luxuries were added to the grassy area, such as a picnic table, bean bags, and a secret place where we hid soft drinks. We went there every day throughout the summer.

"Alright, kids, someone just let me know who isn't here," Mrs. Baker said grouchily from her desk. Normally, I was that someone. Once the role was done, Mrs. Baker simply turned on the overhead TV. We just watched the news until the bell rang.

**.o.o.o.o.o.O.O.O.o.o.o.o.o.**

I approached the usual spot immediately after school, since the mall was only a few blocks away, and I was greeted by Emily, Libby, Jiyuna, Leon, and Furi. I walked towards them, slipping off my pink flats and removing my bag from my shoulder. I sat down on the wooden picnic table, relaxing and watching as Jinsei, Riku, Eric and Lexi entered through the shaded area.

"What, no applause?" said Jinsei.

"Why should we applaud?" Emily asked him.

"Because I arrived, of course," he joked, "Now the party may begin!"

Jiyuna sat up and walked over to her brother and stated, "Sorry to burst your bubble, bro, but you're not getting any applause, and there is no party."

"Oh yeah?" he smirked knowingly, "Guess I'll have to wait to get home, since the congratulatory gifts are all stored in the pantry."

Jiyuna's face turned from one of satisfaction to one of utter surprise. I couldn't help but giggle softly into my hand, seeing that these two siblings were totally comical as a pair. "How did you know?" the younger sibling cried, as shocked as if she were hit by lightning. "I didn't know, you just told me," Jinsei revealed a huge grin, then started to turn around and yelled, "Present time!"

What everyone knew would happen, but still startled us, was Jiyuna's quick reflexes kicking in, and she leaped on her brother, knocking him into the ground. They rolled around, and I motioned to Riku, who was seated at my left, to break them up before this turned into some serious wrestling, as this had multiple times before. Riku got the message, and he grabbed a hyperactive Jiyuna by the waist and jerked her off of Jinsei. The dirt-covered boy told his sister, "I was just kidding, Ji." In reply, Jiyuna grumbled to herself quietly and crossed her arms, seething. The pair was definitely going to have an exceptional time washing out the grass stains.

"Hey, guys," Emily spoke up, trying to make light of the situation, "What did you all think of Ingrid?"

"I like her, but, to be honest, there's just something…off about her," I returned, thinking about the girl from lunch. She was pretty and polite, but she seemed…oh, what's the word? Guarded? Secretive? Whichever word works. I don't know why, but Ingrid just reflected that kind of personality. She may very well be an open book, yet I just can't let go of that oddness about her. Maybe it's just because she's from a different country, maybe that's it.

"I agree," said Lexi, a short girl with long hair in small ringlets and electric blue eyes. She wore a faux fur jacket and splatter paint T-shirt and flared jeans. She had also brought her infamous guitar, the one that she brought to school one day and smashed into a guy's shin when he said some particularly dirty things to her. "She's nice and cool and all, but don't you think she's a little… strange, in a way?"

"Actually, she never came across that way to me before. Ingrid's perfectly normal to me, and I don't think there's anything off about her," Emily snapped back at Lexi, them never having a great bond. Why they're not really good friends, I don't know. Both girls are nice as can be, and they are actually a fair bit alike, such as how they share their humor, their interests, et cetera. Regardless of their similarities, they collide, being neither friends nor foes, more or less considered as frenemies.

I grabbed a soda from the secret compartment, opening it and downing its contents, watching my friends with amusement. Jinsei had just gotten up, covered in dirt and grass stains, just like his sister, who finally calmed down some and was settled on Riku's lap, since she had knocked him onto a bean bag and fell with him. That's what's amusing about Jiyuna; she's not concerned about guys, and they're so comfortable with her that they'll casually sling their arm around her neck or let her sit on them, seeing her as like a little sister.

Emily was seated next to Leon, and Lexi and Eric sat together as well. Furi talked to Jinsei while he was on the grass, she on a bean bag. Libby was right next to Jiyuna and Riku, sprawled half on a bean bag, half on the ground. I just sat alone, and waved away the heat that was beginning to make me sweat. I eventually suggested to the lazy-bones group, "How about we go inside the mall for a bit? It's too hot out here."

"Okay," replied the majority of my friends, and we all got up, gathered our things, and made our way to the large, air-conditioned mall.

* * *

The same figure from the past few nights was no longer shrouded in shadow like usual, but was instead clothed normally, acting like a regular high-schooler. He watched the group of teens in the closed-off area outside of the mall, listening to their conversation with mild interest. As he listened, he overheard a particular topic that he was familiar with, and thought, _I know Ingrid better than anybody else._

Noticing the teens leaving their spot, the boy made a quick departure for his hideout, readying for the next morning to send out the thirteen letters, and awaiting tomorrow night.

**END OF CHAPTER THREE**


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